


Journey To The Land Of Gold

by EyeOfTheSparrow (alright_petal)



Category: Pirates of the Caribbean (Movies)
Genre: Adventure, F/M, Sequel, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-01
Updated: 2016-01-10
Packaged: 2018-05-10 22:08:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5602777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alright_petal/pseuds/EyeOfTheSparrow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Elizabeth Swann has just come back from the months she’s spent at sea. She’s been hiding for a year in Port Royal, haunted by a sea snake, where she has given birth to Will Turner’s son. Soon she finds out about El Dorado, a hidden land of gold located in the Viceroyalty of New Granada (Colombia) - there, in an Aztec temple, an enigma is waiting to be solved. It grants one wish and infinite wealth, and it has become Elizabeth’s only hope to free the father of her child from the Flying Dutchman.<br/>But she can’t do this on her own - she needs someone expert in pre-Columbian tribes and myths to solve the enigma. That’s why she writes to her cousin Scarlett, a student in Oxford soon to be married to a rich gentleman. Will Scarlett agree to help Elizabeth?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This is a work of fiction and some geographical or historical facts may not be 100% accurate - for example, women started to be accepted in Oxford only since 1875. For the sake of the story, however, I pretended Scarlett was one of the first few women to undertake the educational and research path in a university. Moreover, English is not my first language so there may be some errors - please, bear with me and let me know if I should change something.  
> I also tried to be as coherent with the movies' plot as possible. This work is intended to be a sequel to "On Stranger Tides". I assumed Elizabeth spent 2 years at sea (which cover the first three films of the saga) before returning to Port Royal. The story begins after one year, during which she gave birth to Will's son and Jack Sparrow left on the quest for the Fountain of Youth.
> 
> I may come back and edit the chapters as I proceed in the writing, but I will let you know if something has changed.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this fic as much as I loved writing it. Comment as much as you can - your feedback is essential for me :)

_Oxford, April 17th, 1751._

You could tell spring was at its peak just by looking out of the window. Young students were scattered around the university park like daisies, reading books or sunbathing under lace parasols. The English sky was for once clear and bright, the dazzling Saturday sun warming up every exposed surface – from the marble stones of the main building to the back of the valet’s neck who was quickly walking towards the library, a yellowed letter in his gloved hand.

The tickling sound of his heels echoed in the empty corridors, as almost everyone had left that wing for luncheon. However, as he finally reached the wooden doors of the room and opened them with a creaking sound and a demure cough, a pair of green eyes lifted up from one of the desks.

“A letter for you, miss” the valet announced approaching the lady, who was sitting alone in the dim light of the enormous room filled with books and encyclopaedias, and offering her the missive. The young woman, a beautifully rounded figure with curly hair elegantly coiffed on the top of her head, put down the pen she had used to write small, neat notes on a piece of paper and gently examined the envelope. It only had her name written on the front in a trembling cursive and a few stains of what it looked like red wine.

“Thank you, George. Any information on the sender or the content?” she replied, her bejewelled thin fingers stroking the edges of the letter.  
“I’ve been told it comes straight from Port Royal, miss. But I know no more”.

A faint redness spread suddenly on the girl’s cheeks as her curious gaze turned into a nervous frown. She grabbed a paper knife from the pen tray on her desk and quickly dismissed the man.  
“Thank you George, you can go now”.

After a quick bow, the valet turned on his heels and walked away, closing the heavy doors behind him and leaving the lady alone again. Despite the shivers that made her hands tremble, she managed to cut the envelope open and a yellowed letter slipped on the wooden surface of the table. She grabbed it and started reading the inked words, her index finger nervously playing with the pendant on her necklace.

 _Dear Scarlett,_  
 _I hope this letter will sail safely to you. I am sorry I have not written you nor answered to your words these past three years – I have been caught in the most chaotic adventure I could ever imagine. You will struggle to believe it yourself once I would have told you it all. The point is, I’m fine… and I am back._  
 _But I need your help, and I need it now. Please, set sail as soon as you can and meet me at my father’s house in Port Royal. Your presence is essential since I cannot set foot in there – I will_ explain _you why, I promise. I’m expecting you to be here by the end of June – let’s say the 25th. Please, be quick._  
 _Affectionately yours, Elizabeth._

Scarlett remembered to breathe only once she reached the end of the message. She reread it two, three more times before the content started sinking in. Then, she quickly collected her belongings and run out of the library.

* * *

 

The carriage loudly hurried along the tree-lined road that lead to the larger mansion in the neighbours of Oxfordshire. Once it reached the majestic fountain that adorned the front yard, the horses stopped with a neigh and a cloud of dust and gravel lifted up in front of the entrance.

Scarlett stormed out of the coach and climbed up the marble stairs, her floral gown almost sparkling in the April sun. She carelessly ignored the butler, her mind too busy over the urgency of the news she had to deliver, and walked straight inside towards her father’s office.  
Once she reached the door, the young woman took a deep breath to recollect herself and then firmly knocked on the white wooden door to announce her presence.

“Come in – Scarlett! Aren’t you supposed to be studying right now? I did expect you to be home tomorrow morning”. The surprised but low-key happy voice belonged to a fit man who was sitting behind a long desk filled with papers, books and rolls. A white wig was laying on a stand beside a mirror.  
“Father” Scarlett replied, still weary from the sudden departure from the university. “I decided to anticipate in light of some unexpected news I really had to share with you”.

The man stood up and walked towards her, gently grabbing her arm and guiding her towards an expensive-looking velvet sofa. He was young for a judge, and the smoothness of his skin and the piercing blue of his gaze revealed a severe but fair inclination, in addition to the sincere affection he let show through his careful gestures towards Scarlett.  
“Please, have a seat, daughter. You look upset. Tell me what happened”.

The girl massaged her temple in an attempt to find a beginning to her story. “Alright. This morning I was quietly studying in the library when George suddenly appeared with a missive for me” she started, her hand traveling down to her dress, right above the secret pocket that hid the letter.  
“…and?” her father replied, eager to know what was so exciting about it.  
“It was from Liz” Scarlett managed to say.  
“Ah. Elizabeth” the man stiffened. “So she is alive, then”.  
“Father - ”  
“Scarlett, you know already what I think. I am glad you received news from her, but please…”  
“She wants me to go to Port Royal” Scarlett blurted out, regretting it on the very moment.

Her father suddenly stood up, rage filling his blue eyes. “Do not dare mention such an insanity in this house” he hissed. “You have your wedding to worry about, which takes place in three months, if you have already forgotten about it. You have your family here and we do need you now, so it surely is a no”.  
A lonely tear dripped down Scarlett’s cheek, but it wasn’t from sadness – it was from anger. “She is from this family too, if you have already forgotten about it” she whispered, but wanting to be heard.

Her father’s hand hit her face in a blink of an eye. The pain was piercing, but the delusion and grudge were way stronger in the girl’s heart. She ran out of the room, the door banging behind her. Up the stairs, down the left corridor, inside her room – and she felt safe again. The girl abandoned herself on the canopy bed, the brocade curtains hiding her from the rest of the world as she let her tears run free.

How could someone deny their own blood so easily and firmly? Why was her father still holding on something that had happened so many years before? And why did he picked on Elizabeth, who surely had done nothing wrong? Scarlett sat up, still sniffing but with a resolute look in her eyes. She dried her tears with an embroidered hanky, then walked up to her desk. She opened a drawer and quickly pulled out a piece of paper and an envelope from her set.  
She was not giving up. She was a Swann, after all, and fortitude run fiercely in her veins.


	2. Port Royal

_Jamaica, May 23th, 1751._

The Caribbeans were just as Scarlett had imagined after reading books and books on the island tribes of America. An endless expanse of ocean that stretched out in the horizon, hot and implacable rays of sun, high and majestic palms, the smell of motley tropical fruits – everything looked like it came straight out of an idyllic painting. Of course, the roads were untarmacked and not all the sailors that wandered around the piers looked completely honest or friendly, but still. She had the chance to see for the second time a place she had secretly dreamed of since she was a child and even if she would have stayed there just a couple of days she had no intention to miss a single thing or let imperfect details ruin her mood.

As the coach proceeded through the narrow roads of Port Royal’s centre, headed towards the Swann villa, her thoughts travelled back to Oxford for a second. Her father was insanely mad, she was sure of it, and her stomach clenched at the idea of going back home. She did not regret her decision, though – Elizabeth needed her, and she felt like sailing through the ocean was the right thing to do if it involved her family. It didn’t matter if she had disobeyed to her father’s orders, his past and his fight with uncle Weatherby was none of her business. Maybe Richard would have calmed him down, after all – the letter she had written to her fiancé explained everything and he was a man of common sense. That’s why she had agreed to marry him. Yes, Richard would have made her father reason and everything was going to be alright by the time she would come back.  
Lost in these thoughts, Scarlett didn’t realize she had arrived until the carriage suddenly stopped. As she looked through the window, however, she found herself asking the charioteer if the shabby and neglected house in front of them was actually the place she was looking for.

“This is the Swann villa, miss. I confirm it” the man replied, nodding. Scarlett stayed silent, too surprised to put a sentence together. The last time she had seen that house had occurred 10 years before, but it was still hard to believe that a respectable governor and his daughter lived there. Vines and creepers had invaded the façade and rubble of any kind was scattered around the front yard, immersed in wildly grown grass. Nobody was to be seen in the surroundings – no butlers, no servants, no Elizabeth.  
“And sir, why isn’t it taken care of?” the girl asked, puzzled. How was it possible that his uncle, the most meticulous and tidy man on Earth, let his own house rot?  
“It has been abandoned for a few years, I recall, miss”.  
“Oh…” was everything Scarlett could say. Maybe they had all moved elsewhere and Elizabeth preferred to meet her there. Honestly, the girl couldn’t wrap her head around the situation, so she just went along with it. She trusted Elizabeth – in spite of all her sometimes weird ideas, she always knew what she was doing.  
Scarlett carefully climbed down the coach, helped by the charioteer. She grabbed her small, light suitcase and with a heavy breath and a kind thank you she started making her way towards the building.  
“A piece of advice, miss Swann” the man exclaimed behind her, just before she was out of sight. “I wouldn’t go around saying my name, if I was you. Try to be… quiet, may I say. And enjoy the stay! I will be here next week, same hour”.

Scarlett frowned, but waved her hand as the carriage slowly disappeared down the road. Then, she rummaged inside her pockets until she grabbed an old, rusty key. She had kept it all those years as a memory from the best (and worst) summer of her life, but she never expected it to be useful again. But one never knows what fate might put they into, and so Scarlett was there, turning the key in the door lock of that abandoned house in the middle of the Caribbean sea. Surprisingly, it worked – and she was in.

The interior was definitely better than she had expected. Of course, it was dusty and dirty, but still liveable. The furniture was covered with white sheets and the windows let just a few rays of light inside, making the atmosphere eerie for those who walked in there – but not for Scarlett. She had lived in that house for four months and she knew it too well to be scared from it.  
She opened a few windows to let some fresh air in, then she headed upstairs, where Elizabeth’s bedroom was. It took just a quick look inside to realize that even if a decade had gone by everything was still the same. From the vanity table to the wooden and silk shield, to the burgundy curtains of the bed… every single thing in that room brought new memories to Scarlett’s clouded mind, causing her to giggle in the dim light.  
After unpacking the suitcase and pulling out (relatively) new covers from a dresser, Scarlett changed into a more modest outfit – a simple old-rose gown that didn’t hinder her too much. She wanted to take a walk and maybe see the ocean closer… she could also buy a souvenir for Richard.

* * *

 

The streets of Port Royal were messy and loud, but Scarlett loved it. There was people of any kind running up and down lost in God knew what kind of business: merchants, cooks, servants, soldiers of the Royal Navy, suspicious blokes, young maidens, tanned children. The list could go on forever and wherever Scarlett turned there was a different face.  
She walked until she reached the main square, attracted by a stand selling paintings of ships and foaming waves. She was just halfway through the square when a coach suddenly broke out of nowhere, crossing her path and causing her to stop suddenly – she managed not to get hit, but as she tried to keep her balance she stumbled into a man that happened to be behind her, grabbing his arm.

“I am sorry sir, I just -” she started saying, readjusting herself, but the man didn’t reply. He just wiggled out of her grip and turned the other way round, stomping in the opposite direction. She didn’t even see his face properly as he was wearing a hood.  
_Sure this town is weird_ Scarlett thought, still a bit shaken by the barely avoided incident, before heading towards the stand. An old lady was arranging the canvases exposed while a few gentlemen discussed about a particular painting that Scarlett couldn’t see – they were completely covering it with their bodies. She approached the stall, inspecting a few pictures just in case she found something her fiancé might like. She was admiring a tropical landscape when she casually heard a few words from the men beside her.

“I’m telling you, it must be cursed”  
“Come on, don’t be so superstitious”  
“I’d be careful before buying it, Mr. Brew. You should listen to Mr. Middleton, he’s an art expert”  
“Oh really? Then why doesn’t he see that this is just a picture of a boat?”  
“Mr. Brew, that one is not just a boat. It’s the Black Pearl, I’m telling you”

Scarlett frowned and tried to force herself not to eavesdrop, but what the three gentlemen said right after made her blood turn cold.

“Ah, the Black Pearl. And so?”  
“Mr. Brew, as Mr. Johnson said I am indeed an art expert – and I was here when that damned ship approached our shore. Hordes of pirates invaded Port Royal three years ago and since then this has turned in everything but a safe haven” replied the man Scarlett had identified as Mr. Middleton.  
“And what does this have to do with a stupid painting?” asked Mr. Brews.  
“Everything associated with that vessel is dangerous and doomed – just know that since that attack the governor turned into a felon and his daughter set sail to become a pirate”

As these final words were pronounced, Scarlett felt like she couldn’t breathe properly. Were they really talking about her uncle? And what did they mean when they said Liz had turned into a pirate? That was the wildest statement she had ever heard and she turned around to let those gentlemen know how things really were and how respectable her family was – but she couldn’t even start, because all of a sudden the church bells started ringing loudly and violently.  
The men, who just a second before were carelessly speaking about a painting, had now dropped it on the ground and joined the chaotic crowd that had started running in every direction. Scarlett caught a glimpse of the picture that had caused the discussion: it depicted an ink black ship in the middle of a storm, with bright lightings in the background and ferociously high waves. Her gaze was somehow magnetized by that image and she was tempted to grab it and take it with her, but the old woman of the stall grabbed her arm and started pushing her away.  
“Run, run young lady! It’s time! RUN!” she screamed, and Scarlett woke up from the trance she had found herself in when she had looked at the painting. She lifted her eyes up all she could see were terrified faces, doors being locked, children crying, armed men that hurried the rest of the people away… but away from what?

Suddenly, a piercing silence filled the air and everyone seemed to be deprived of their voice. As the sun sunk down into the ocean, its blood-red rays melting into the horizon, the waves started to swell. It was as if something was trying to emerge from the deepest abyss, moving tons of water but struggling to reach the surface. Then, a loud shriek echoed in the air and chaos broke out once again.  
Scarlett did not bother to look further – the only thing on her mind was going back to the Swann villa. She grabbed the edge of her gown and run like her life depended on it, and sure it did. She heard screams and monstrous noises behind her, but she did not turn around.

After a few minutes of panicked running, which seemed like thousand centuries, it was all quiet again – no more cries, no more eerie calls. However, Scarlett was not at the villa. She was still downtown, but she was lost.  
There was not a living soul in the surroundings. The street she had found herself in was completely deserted and silent. The doors were all locked and bolted, as well as the windows. It was also getting darker and the first stars had started glittering in the evening sky of the Caribbeans.  
The girl realised for the first time that she was miles and miles away from home, away from the man she loved and who had always protected her, and she regretted disobeying to her father. Why had she ever decided to leave? Just because a cousin she had last seen 10 years before had suddenly asked for help? Why did she came alone? It was so inappropriate for a young woman of her position to wander around the world, in a foreign town, on her own – even if she suspected that in that God-forgotten place her name had lost all its importance.  
She was about to cry, that was for sure. Scarlett angrily rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand to prevent the burning tears of despair from falling.

_Collect youself, Scarlett Marie Swann. You are a smart, intelligent woman. Head towards the fort, find a soldier of the Royal Navy and ask to be escorted, she thought. Pick yourself up, Swann._

She could glimpse the fort from her position. It was dangerously close to the sea, which looked terrible in its quiet immobility – whatever had happened before made it now look like a deadly snare.  
A salted breeze ruffled her hair as she started walking down the street. The eerie silence seemed to wrap her up like a spider web, so when the first flickering lanterns of the Two Moons Inn appeared with the promise of a warm place and some human company, Scarlett didn’t think about it twice.  
She sped up her pace, her heels clicking on the cobbled road, until she reached the hostel door. A wooden sign painted in black and adorned with two golden globes was swinging over Scarlett as she took a deep breath and finally made her way inside.

The heath of the fireplace just across the entrance warmed her up immediately. It was a quiet place. A couple of sailors were drinking some rum at the counter, a woman was feeding her child in a corner and a man dressed in black with the hood on was sipping beer from a stein, his back turned to the door.  
Another person was sitting at an empty table, with high brown boots up to their knees and a wide leather hat, from which blond locks of hair unruly escaped. The strange figure was looking down on a wide piece of paper spread on the wooden surface. The only free seat was right in front of it.

Scarlett reached the table and noticed that the piece of paper was some sort of map. She told herself not to care about other people’s business, and instead she turned to face the person.  
“I am sorry to bother you, sir… Could I please sit at that chair?”  
As the figure lifted the head, Scarlett almost fainted. Her interlocutor stood up slowly and with a trembling hand took off the hat.  
“Scarlett?”  
The girl squinted her eyes twice before replying with another question.  
“Elizabeth?”


	3. Reunions

Scarlett couldn’t believe that the person she had mistaken for a man or a sailor was instead her cousin. Her tanned skin and sun-bleached hair, that once reached her waist but now didn’t go past her shoulders, were clear evidence of the long months Elizabeth had spent at sea. In spite of those changes and her man attire, however, she had still those deep brown eyes and delicate features that made her unique – and it hit Scarlett so hard that they were finally together that after a few seconds of disorientation she finally managed to grab Elizabeth by her shoulders and draw her closer in a hug.

“Oh my god, Elizabeth… I was so worried for you” Scarlett whispered in her cousin’s ear. She noticed a vague briny scent.  
“I am alright, dear. I know my message might have seen a bit disturbing, but I am alright” Elizabeth replied, detaching herself from the hug to take a better look at the other girl. Smiling, she quickly caressed Scarlett’s arm and then proceeded to move the free chair closer to her own. “I see you’re doing fine as well. I guess we have a lot to catch up on. Take a seat here, next to me. Publican” she then exclaimed towards the counter, “bring us two beers, if you may – you like beer, don’t you?”  
Scarlett stood agape for a second, then muttered a yes as she sat down. It was weird, indeed – what was Liz doing in a shabby pub drinking beer and dressed like a man? Why she couldn’t set foot in her house? Where was uncle Weatherby?

“So” Elizabeth started, “I did not expected you to be here before the 25th, but I am glad you managed to leave earlier. How are things back in England?”  
Scarlett shrugged, adjusting the thick fabric of the dress in her lap.  
“Well, they were good before I left. I suppose my father is insanely mad at me now, though”  
“Oh, I expected that” Elizabeth knowingly stated as the innkeeper brought them two steins filled with a yellow-ish liquid. Scarlett took a sip, but winched in distaste causing the other young woman to giggle.  
“He did not understand how I couldn’t resist to your request for help. But I wrote a letter to Richard – do you remember him? I explained him everything. He will put in a good word for me”  
Elizabeth lifted her eyebrows in surprise. “Richard! Of course I remember him. He was one of your closest friends, if I recall correctly. You are still on good terms, I see”  
“Well” Scarlett replied, her cheeks turning red. “We are getting married, actually. In two months”  
Elizabeth almost chocked on her beer. “Bloody hell, Scarlett! Congratulations!” she exclaimed, the glass of her stein dinging against her cousin’s.  
Scarlett frowned at the girl’s peculiar choice of words. Where had she learned to swear like that? Echoes of the gentlemen’s words resonated in her head – words like _pirates_. But no, it must have been living in a harbour town for more than ten years.

“Thank you, Liz” Scarlett smiled, attempting a second taste of the beer. This time it wasn’t as bad as before – at least, she started to warm up a bit more.  
“Are you happy? Is he treating you right?” Elizabeth investigated, a foxy smile painted on her pink lips.  
Scarlett sighed, her gaze lost in the void. Was she happy? Of course she was. Richard was indeed handsome, intelligent, rich, and protective. He was everything she could ask for. He was everything every girl on Earth could ask for. He understood her more than anyone.  
“Of course, yes. We are organizing the ceremony in every detail. You are invited, of course. Maybe we will find someone for you as well, if uncle Weatherby hasn’t already provided you with a fascinating Royal Navy Commodore”.  
Elizabeth started giggling, until it turned into an open laugh. Scarlett quietly joined her, not really understanding why her words were so funny.  
“Oh, Scarlett, I have never laughed so much, I swear” Elizabeth sighed, her grin slowly turning into a painful smile. “To be thorough, a Commodore did ask for my hand… but I preferred to marry a blacksmith, who turned out to be a pirate. We set sail with a crew for two years and when I came back one year ago in Port Royal he was cursed, I was carrying his child and my father was dead, along with the reputation and the name of our family”.

This time it was Scarlett’s turn to laugh. “Come on, cousin, this cannot be real! You’re making fun of me!”  
Elizabeth looked deadly serious, though. Scarlett’s laugh started fading as she began to put the pieces together. The desert, abandoned villa; the rumors about the governor and his daughter; the clothes Elizabeth was wearing; the fact that she had to stay away from her family’s house.  
“I-I don’t think I am feeling too well” Scarlett whispered, grabbing the edge of the table. The room started to spin – the woman in the corner, the sailors, the man with the hood that was now looking at them. Everything was blurred and then it turned black.

* * *

 

“Scarlett? Scarlett. Wake up, darling”

These words echoed in her brain as Scarlett raised herself up on her elbows. She was laying on a bed – not a canopy one with brocade curtains and gold craved into a precious wooden structure, but the mattress was soft and the sheet were white and clean, with a sweet lavender scent.  
She gave a look around. The room was simple and small, but cozy and homely. The sky behind the windowpane was jet black, but a lamp enlightened the surrounds – there was a wardrobe, a table with two chairs and a crib.  
Elizabeth was kneeling beside her, holding a wet cloth on Scarlett’s forehead.  
“Where are we?” the girl asked, sitting up slowly.  
“Somewhere safe, don’t worry” Elizabeth replied with a smile, folding the cloth and putting it down on a tiny nightstand before sitting next to her on the bed.

All of a sudden, all the memories from the past hours emerged from Scarlett’s subconscious and she grabbed her cousin’s arm.  
“What you told me… Is that true?”  
Elizabeth smiled and nodded, pointing towards the crib. “That’s the ultimate proof, I guess”.  
Scarlett flinched, her noble hand on her mouth; but then she stood up, her tired limbs waving a bit.  
“Hey, there… go slow” Elizabeth stated, jumping up and holding the girl.  
“It’s fine” Scarlett stopped her. As Liz lifted her hands and took a step back with a smile, she started walking towards the crib. Once she reached it, she hovered over it and her green eyes met a tiny pair of brown ones.  
Scarlet stroked gently the puffy cheeks of the baby, a grin spreading on her lips.  
“What is his name?”  
“William, like his father”  
Scarlett blew a kiss to the child, who giggled and then rolled on the other side. In a few minutes, slow snores announced he was lost in his sleep.  
Scarlett turned around and reached the bed, sitting down and patting on the sheets beside her as she looked up at Elizabeth. “Tell me everything”.

It took Elizabeth more than one hour to describe all the adventures she had gone through and once she had finished Scarlett’s mind almost hurt. Unbelievable words echoed in her hears – ghost ships, cursed treasures, skeletons, cannibal tribes, pirates, goddesses, maps, the world’s end, maelstroms, Davy Johnes… it was too much.  
“Liz” she started after a few minutes of silence, “you know this is all so hard to believe”.  
“Star, listen to me carefully” Elizabeth replied. Scarlett blinked – it had been years since the last time someone called by her nickname. Back in England, formalities of all kinds needed to be respected, but a few hours with Elizabeth had made her remember how good it felt to get rid of all that.  
“I am, darling”  
“Great. Last afternoon, do you remember it? The ocean at sunset?”  
A shiver run down the curly girl’s spine. “I do”, she nodded.  
“Do you know what that thing in the water was?”  
Scarlett shook her head.  
“Well” Elizabeth continued, “That was a sea snake. Now, if that is real and you saw it… could it make you believe everything I told you?”  
“Oh my god” Scarlett sighed, hiding her face in her hands. That was simply absurd. But even if she hadn’t technically seen the monster, she deeply knew that what she had heard couldn’t possibly belong to something of this world. She recalled all the stories and legends she had read about when she was a child and – she truly believed in those inked words, back then. And now they had become realer than ever, and she didn’t need to see a sea snake straight into the face to recognize one.

“Alright. I believe you” Scarlett finally stated, lifting her eyes and looking at Elizabeth. “But I need to know why you wanted me here. How can I possibly help you? I mean, you have been through so many things and you have changed into a strong, tough woman… why am I here, Liz?”  
Elizabeth took her cousin’s hands and sighed.  
“That sea snake was sent as soon as I came back here by Calypso, to prevent me from setting sail to look for Will. Once a day it raises from the waters and slaughters dozens of people. I did not get it at first – I was carrying a child and I surely had no intention to sacrifice another life to save Will and provide a substitute captain for the Flying Dutchman. I had enough of killing people – I had to, but they were miserable, terrible souls of cursed men.  
Then I started thinking more about it, especially after my child’s birth. Calypso knows I don’t apparently have a chance and I would never risk my life against those damned waters. So why a sea snake?”  
“Because there is another way to save Will” Scarlett concluded.  
“Exactly” Elizabeth nodded, a light of hope in her eyes.  
“You want me to help you finding out what that is?” the other asked, rubbing her temple.  
“That part has already been taken care of” Liz replied. She put her hand under the bed and grabbed a roll of parchment. “I found this in the library – the selection in Port Royal isn’t the best, but sure they don’t lack on naval topics”.  
She unrolled it and it took just one glance for Scarlett to identify a map of South America. Elizabeth pointed at a trait of coast belonging to the Viceroyalty of New Granada.  
“Somewhere around here there’s a cave. It leads to a hidden land, called the Land of Gold – in the middle of it, there’s an Aztec temple with an enigma. Those who solve it are granted one wish and the ownership of all the treasures of the Land, which is said to be built in gold from head to toe”  
“El Dorado” whispered Scarlett. She knew everything about it – she had read at least a dozen tomes on the pre-Columbian and Aztec tribes and their legends and surely El Dorado was the most famous. “So you think that the wish will free Will from the Dutchman’s curse?”  
“I do, yes. But I can’t go there on my own – I am not an expert of such things. I need you to come with me”  
Scarlett was speechless. “Elizabeth… it will take months. It’s… it’s insane. I can’t come – I need to be home for my wedding! I could stay with you, let’s say for a month, but then I need to sail back to England. Oh my god, my father will kill me”  
Elizabeth hugged her tightly. “Star, don’t worry. I tried to ask you now, but when you told me about the wedding I knew it was impossible for you. But still” and here she detached herself, still holding Scarlett’s hands, “I need you to tell me everything you know about El Dorado. I must be prepared. So I have a compromise”  
Scarlett squeezed Elizabeth’s finger with a sigh. “I’m listening”.  
“I need a crew, a ship, and a captain. I’ve been the King of the Pirate Lords, but I’m still a woman and not everybody knows the full story – no one will believe me and I have no intention to share my past and my intentions. However, I know how and where to find what I need. You are not forced to, but if you’d sail with me to Tortuga and explain me everything about these damned Aztecs, I’d be grateful for life. I know a merchant that will freely bring us there – he leaves in a few hours. Once I find the ship and the crew, I’ll sail you back to Port Royal and you’ll be free to go back to England and marry your Richard. Deal?”  
Scarlett stood up, nervously walking around the room. “But what about your baby?” she asked under her voice, pointing to the peacefully swinging crib.  
“He’ll stay with Marion – she owns this house and worked at the villa, so we are very close. It’s because of her that I still have a safe place here”.  
Scarlett stopped in front of the window, thinking. “Liz, how much will it take?”  
“Three weeks to go and come back, more or less” Elizabeth replied expectantly.

Scarlett was torn. Was it worth it? Sailing to an infamous pirate island and delay her return to Oxford? But she couldn’t leave her cousin on her own… not again. Plus, her father was already mad so she could take a chance and hope he calmed down during those days. As for Richard… the timing was fair and he would have understood, right? He trusted her and she trusted him.  
“Alright” Scarlett heard those words exhale from her mouth, which caused Elizabeth to silently cheer. “I just hope you’re not going after that pirate you mentioned, Sparrow. I think you need a more faithful help”.  
Elizabeth giggled, packing up a few clothes and the map in a leather bag, then heading towards the crib. She lifted little Will up – he was still asleep, even when she kissed his forehead and hold him closer to her heart.  
“He’s a good man, Star. You will like him, I promise. Now let’s go back to the villa and get your things. A ship is waiting for us”.


	4. Hitting The Waves

If the villa looked abandoned and neglected, at night it seemed haunted. An eerie mist surrounded the cracked marble of the building, almost hiding its view from the road. It was all silent, except for the wails of an owl hidden on top of a tree in the front yard.

Scarlett slid the key in the door lock and turned it. The door creaked and she headed inside, followed by Elizabeth.  
“I’ll go upstairs and gather up my things” Scarlett said, already halfway through the staircase.  
“Wait” Elizabeth exclaimed, picking up something on the doorstep. It was a letter. “I think it’s for you”.  
Scarlett frowned – who would send her a missive in Jamaica? Maybe it was her father. But once she grabbed the envelope, her heart skipped a beat. The handwriting that neatly stated her full name was way too familiar.  
“I’ll read it upstairs, if you don’t mind” Scarlett told her cousin, putting the letter in a pocket of her dress.  
“As you wish” the other replied, offering Scarlett a pile of clothes and a leather bag similar to hers – she had found them in a dresser in the entrance. “You can wear these – they were stocked for our valets, but they’re clean and comfortable. And the bag will be easier to carry around”.  
Scarlett nodded and took the garments. Her hands itched from the desire to read the message she had received.

She run upstairs towards Elizabeth’s room and quickly threw into the bag a few dresses, a notebook, a pen with some ink, a tome about treasure myths and all the money left. She got rid of her gown and unfolded the clothes Elizabeth had given her – there was a pair of boots, a white linen shirt and black high-waisted slacks. She had never dressed as a man before, but there’s always a first time, right? And by now she was already neck-deep into a completely new situation.  
Once she got ready, instead of going downstairs again, Scarlett sat on the bed and opened the envelope with one straight rip. A short message slid on her lap and her throat tightened as she started reading it.

_Oxford, April 20th 1751_

_Scarlett Marie Swann,_  
I am extremely disappointed with you. Are you out of your mind? Sailing to the Caribbeans ON YOUR OWN? For the sake of a cousin you should disown? I talked to your father and he gave me the permission to set sail for Port Royal tomorrow. I better find you or our wedding is over. I am not marrying a dishonourable, crazy woman. This is not what you are.  
R.

A hurricane of contrasting feelings hit Scarlett, but none of them was sadness or regret. She already knew that her father disapproved her choice, she could live with that. But not finding a support in Richard, her fiancé who now acted like he wanted to call the celebration over, was something she had never predicted. She wanted him there, but as a help – not as a punishment. Why was he like that? He had never, ever seemed so angry.

Scarlett felt suddenly caged. She was a Capricorn and she strived for independence – in her life, she had always tried to make men see behind her gender by studying hard, getting high grades, applying to Oxford. And then she had found help and support from her father and Richard. But now that she had made a choice that didn’t reflect what the two most important men of her life wanted for her… what was she supposed to do?  
Obey and maintain her reputation of studious, honourable woman? Make her father and future husband satisfied?  
Or disobey and still be the studious, honourable woman she knew she was – but be independent as well? The price was risking to lose her marriage, her name, her own father, everything that she had left since that damned summer of ten years before.

Scarlett realised that there was something else on the other side of the scale. There was a cousin she loved who needed help. There were her freedom and independence and a chance to apply her years of studies on tropical civilizations. But above all, there was an adventure, and she had been closed inside libraries and university halls for too much time.  
Scarlett ripped the piece of paper and threw it on the floor. If Richard wanted to marry her he had to respect her and support her – if he really wanted her, he had to come and find her. She wasn’t making this any easier.

“Scarlett” a whisper coming from the door made the girl turn around towards Elizabeth. “Are you ready? You don’t need to take too much, you’ll be back in just…”  
“I changed my mind” Scarlett cut her off. “I’m coming to New Granada”  
Elizabeth walked into the room, trying to hold back her grin. “Are you sure?”  
“Yes, I am” Scarlett answered, crossing her arms on her chest with a smile. “I won’t let you find a bloody treasure on your own”.  
Both the girls started giggling at her cuss.  
“I see you’re learning fast. If things are like this...” Elizabeth said, approaching the wardrobe and grabbing a long wooden box leaning on its side, “…you will need this”.  
She plumped it down on the bed and lifted the cover up, unveiling a shiny and sharp sword. It was beautifully crafted and Scarlett couldn’t resist to caress its hilt with trembling fingers.  
“I-I don’t think I can use this” she whispered, her eyes reflecting on the polished steel.  
“I will teach you” Elizabeth stated, winking. “It’s not that hard, and this is a lucky sword. It was the first one I used before Will made this as a wedding gift” she concluded, patting on the sheath on her side.

Scarlett lifted it up, trying to remember the basics of fencing she had learned when she was young. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and for a second she struggled to recognise her own body. She was dressed like a man, with a sword in her hands, ready to leave for a pirate island looking for a probably insane captain, who would have helped them reach a mythical and probably inexistent land made of pure gold.  
Maybe Richard was right… maybe that girl who had cursed a few minutes before wasn’t her.

A loud thump coming from downstairs made the girls suddenly startle. Elizabeth put her index finger on her lips, tiptoeing to the door and locking it after checking out the corridor. Scarlett didn’t know what to do while the other pushed a small dresser in front of it before running up to the window.  
“Star, I have the feeling I am being followed” Elizabeth whispered as she opened the panes. “I have been noticing a man for a few days – he is always dressed in black and wears a hood. I think he followed us here”  
Scarlett startled, looking terrified towards the door. “Liz, I saw him too! He was behind me in the square today…”  
“And at the pub” Elizabeth concluded, tightening a knot she had made with the bed sheets. She had made a sort of rope and had fastened it to the wardrobe, right before throwing it outside the window.  
“Do you expect me to go down there?” Scarlett asked under her voice, nervously twisting her hands. Suddenly, heavy steps started stomping up the staircase, echoing in the empty corridors. The mysterious man was getting closer.  
“Do you want to fight now?” Elizabeth hissed, her left foot already on the cornice.  
“No no no” the other replied, hurrying towards the window. “Let me go first”.  
“As I thought” Elizabeth sighed, making some space. The steps were approaching faster, so her hand was already gripping the sword’s hilt.

Scarlet was already halfway down, trying not to think about the height and repeating to herself that it was just at the first floor. She finally reached the ground when she heard a loud bang – then, Elizabeth screamed something and the sound of steel against steel filled the air. Scarlett couldn’t see a thing, but she knew that the intruder had made its way inside the room. She didn’t know what to do – Elizabeth was in danger, but she couldn’t climb back up, and probably she wouldn’t have helped her that much.  
“Oh my god, oh my god” Scarlett exclaimed. That wasn’t the best start.  
A bang interrupted her nervous thoughts, followed by the noise of something breaking in a thousand pieces. Then, Elizabeth’s legs made their way down the knotted rope of sheets.  
“Liz are you alright?” Scarlet asked, worried and scared to death.  
“Yes, he’s lost his senses for now. Let’s go” the other replied.

The two started running away from the Swann villa, down towards the piers.

* * *

 

Scarlett soon realised how much she had missed being in the middle of the sea. As the waves hit with splashes and great amounts of salty foam the wooden sides of the American vessel they had found hospitality on, she observed the horizon from the deck, leaning on the railing. The warm sun stroked her pale face, turning her cheeks bright red, while the ocean breeze ruffled her untied curls.  
She sometimes visited Sussex or Kent during the summer, but she had never went further than a walk on the dusty beaches. The last time she had been on a proper ship dated back to the same summer Port Royal had kept reminding her of. Those months when all changed.  
As she wandered towards the bow, she realised that all the good things that she really had enjoyed in her life had happened there, in the Caribbeans, and she still remembered every detail. Elizabeth had moved to Jamaica when she was nine, due to a promotion of her father Weatherby Swann – the girls were very close, and the only thing that had calmed Scarlet down once she had heard about her cousin moving on the other side of the world was the promise of a visit.  
A year after the official assignment of governor Swann, Scarlet’s parents had left Oxford with their only daughter to spend the summer in Port Royal. For four months, Elizabeth and Scarlett lived in a dream – they were always outside, playing on the beach or running among the palmed gardens of the villa. They ate tropical fruit and drank tons of coconut water, sunbathed till the golden sphere of the sun sunk in the depths of the Caribbean sea, collected shells and crustacean barks. William Turner had joined them sometimes – Elizabeth’s father had rescued him from a shipwreck or something, and he had become friends with the girl. It was the time of their life, until…

“Scarlett!”  
The girl’s memories got interrupted by Elizabeth’s voice – she was hurrying towards her, two apples in her hand.  
“I have been looking for you for a while! I see you woke up earlier” Liz observed, offering her cousin one of the fruits.  
“I couldn’t really sleep, you know. I rested for a few hours, but then the sun was up and I just wanted to admire the sea” Scarlett replied, grabbing the green pome. They had reached the piers right before the sunset, and the ship had set sail almost immediately to avoid any trouble with the sea snake.  
“Was it because of the letter?” Elizabeth asked, “I mean… You don’t have to tell me. I am just worried for you”.  
Scarlett smiled at her, then took a bite from the apple, munching thoughtfully.  
“It was from Richard” she finally replied, swallowing, “apparently he’s after me. I don’t think his quest will end up too early”.  
The girls giggled, then Elizabeth wrapped Scarlett in a hug.  
“Thank you”.  
“You are welcome” the other replied, even if in her heart there were still a lot of insecurities about her choice.  
“Do you mind if we talk for a minute? You know… about the El Dorado thing” Elizabeth asked under her voice, trying not to be heard from the rest of the crew.  
Scarlett nodded and followed her.

They reached the quarter deck, walking past the captain at the helm. With a touch of the hat and a small bow, he greeted the girls, letting them find a seat in a corner behind him.  
“Is he alright with us being here?” Scarlett asked Elizabeth, “I’ve heard that sailors think it’s unlucky to have a woman on board”.  
“Oh, don’t worry, he’s American” Elizabeth replied with a grin, “he’s not so narrow minded. Plus, he is half deaf so that’s why I brought you here”.  
Scarlett nodded, then put her notebook on her lap – she had started taking notes since that morning, so she carried it with her everywhere.  
“Here is what I know so far – I consulted the book on pre-Columbian tribes in South America. I still have to do some more research, though” she started. “First of all, El Dorado was originally a mythical tribal chief of native people of the Muisca tribe, who covered himself in gold dust and dived into Lake Guatavita as an initiation rite. As centuries went by, the name changed its meaning and started referring to an empire believed to be on the shores of the sacred Lake Parime. It’s needless to say that neither the lake nor the golden city have ever been found”.  
Elizabeth nodded thoughtfully, her gaze lost in the horizon.  
“Go on”  
Scarlett took a breath and continued. “The first expeditions date back to 1535. Names like Pizarro, sir Walter Raleigh, sir Thomas Roe and Ponce de León are cited. Jungles and valleys have been explored in every direction with no results. The legend says that along the main tributary of lake Parime there’s a hidden cave, that only the unselfish ones can see – whoever is interested merely in the gold and wealth of El Dorado is not meant to find it. Through a complex array of tunnels and waterfalls the cave brings the explorers to a clearing, where a golden path leads to the city” Scarlett concluded, the pages of her jotter closed on her lap.  
Elizabeth frowned, turning towards her. “That’s it?”  
“That’s it for now, yes”  
“No mentions of the enigma?”  
Scarlett rested her chin on Elizabeth’s shoulder. “Sadly, no. But what I have found so far is a good starting point for our research. I just need more material – one book is not enough”.  
Liz sighed, but this time she smiled. “Where can we find more books? Say a place, I’ll take you there”  
“Well” Scarlett replied “I think there shall be something in the National Library of Santa Fé de Bogotá, where the main findings and remains of the expeditions are collected. Yeah, we should visit it, if we can”.  
Elizabeth stood up, her figure against the sun. “Alright” she stated, offering her hand to Scarlett so that she could lift herself up. “Now it’s my turn”.  
“To do what?” Scarlett asked, stretching her legs.  
“You’ve helped me, now I help you” Elizabeth replied, winking. “Go get your sword, it’s time to review some fencing”.

* * *

The crew had left the deck to have dinner and the sunrays weren’t as burning as that morning – it was the perfect time to practice some physical activity.

Scarlett and Elizabeth were standing one in front of the other: one with her torso straight and tense, firmly holding the sword, the other more relaxed and nimble, feet apart and easy wrists.  
“Okay Star” Elizabeth exclaimed, “Lesson number one. Follow your instinct and feel your guts”  
“Wha-” Scarlett was suddenly cut off by her cousin’s, who approached her quickly with a lunge – luckily, her reflexes were still quite good and she managed to block the blade with hers, backing off and almost tripping. Her cheeks where red in embarrassment.  
“It wasn’t that bad” Elizabeth observed, walking back to her place and readjusting herself in the starting position. “Remember that most of the times you’ll fight on a ship – not on solid ground. You need to keep your balance, feel your body, let the sword guide you”.  
Scarlett tried to keep all that information in her mind, but a after a few seconds Elizabeth attacked her again. This time, she blocked her faster but Elizabeth didn’t back off and soon Scarlett felt the cold steel on her side, over the linen of her shirt.  
“Lesson number two – expect the unexpected” Elizabeth proceeded. “You must be always prepared and never tired. If you give up, you’re dead”  
Scarlett bit her lower lip. She was everything but athletic, she would have never gone through a fight.  
“Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it. A few weeks working on a proper ship and you’ll be the best pirate ever” Elizabeth added, noticing her discomfort. Scarlett flinched – she had no intentions to turn into a pirate. No offence for Liz and her friends, of course, but that just wasn’t for her.  
“Now it’s time for lesson number three, then we’ll stop here – hold the fight and defend yourself”  
The blades clanked together and for a couple of minutes the main deck turned into a battlefield. Scarlett moved backwards and was more rigid than Elizabeth, who advanced with incredible ease and tried to make simple moves, but she kept the situation under control – at a certain point, however, her back hit the mainmast and she was trapped.  
“You need to keep an eye on your surroundings and be less stiff, but honestly you did better than I expected” Elizabeth concluded, taking Scarlett under her arm – she was panting and sweating, her cheeks red from the effort she wasn’t used to, but a smile was plastered on her face.  
“It felt great” was the only thing she said. She hadn’t moved that much in a long time, and she regretted quitting fencing when she was younger. But who would have predicted that it would turn out that useful?  
“I know, I know” Elizabeth laughed. “let’s just hope you won’t need it”.


	5. Tortuga

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: this chapters contains references to child abuse.

The days went by faster than Scarlett expected. She switched between practising with the sword and re-reading the book over and over, trying to figure out if there was something she had missed. In spite of the constant swinging and rippling of the ship and her tiny bunk, she slept extremely well and once the sun had risen on the horizon she was already out on the deck, greeting the members of the crew while munching on an apple.

Elizabeth liked to just sit back and look at her. They had always been like sisters, if not even twins – since their tender age, they used to do everything together and both shared an intense attraction towards mysteries and adventures, that sometimes put them in trouble. They once got lost in the woods during a walk with their fathers, and also liked to sneak inside the library and the forbidden rooms of each other’s house to play hide and seek. The only difference between them was that Elizabeth had had the chance to develop her inclination when she had moved to Port Royal – that place offered too many occasions to explore and let the imagination run wild.  
Scarlett, on the other hand, had taken the path of endless studies and hard research – it was her choice, of course, but any small hint of rebellion had been suppressed from her father, judge Swann, once they had come back from their stay in Jamaica.  
Years had passed, and surely letters could not perfectly preserve intact the relationship between Elizabeth and her cousin – however, the deep trust and mutual affection was still strong, and those few days they had spent together on the American vessel had already proven it. The sea and open air were also slowly turning Scarlett into the free, wild child she used to be. And that’s what Liz had started noticing and enjoying.

It was the seventh day of sailing now – Tortuga wasn’t that far, and they would have reached it by night. The two girls were sitting quietly on the wooden stairs that led to the quarterdeck, absorbing the last rays of light before the sun started setting.  
“Liz?” Scarlett asked all of a sudden. The other opened an eye and looked at her with curiosity. “Can I ask you something?”  
Elizabeth shrugged with a smile. “Go ahead”.  
“Do you have any idea about the man that was following us?”  
“I’ve been thinking about it, but no. I wondered if he might be Barbossa, but I haven’t heard from him in ages and I am quite sure to say he’d prefer to show off by making an entrance – not by sneaking behind people’s back. Calypso has already provided with that sea snake, even though it ended up not being a proper problem, and I don’t think she’d waste her time checking up on me with a mere human being. I really don’t know who it may be”.  
“Haven’t you looked at his face when you hit him back in Port Royal?”  
Elizabeth shook her head. “No, I was worried about you and I didn’t want to risk more and waste time. And he wore a mask under his hood and it didn’t come off when he fell on the ground – it may be enchanted or something, I preferred not to investigate more. I just hope it ended there”.  
Scarlett nodded, trying to come up with an answer, but if Elizabeth had no idea about the identity of the man she surely couldn’t pop out a name out of the blue. Moreover, she got the feeling that it wasn’t the last time they were going to see him, in spite of Liz’s wish.

The sky was slowly turning darker, blotches of orange and crimson painting the few clouds that had appeared in the blue. Suddenly, a high pitched call broke the soft bustle of the waves and a candid seagull flew over the mainmast. Scarlett amusingly looked at it, but Elizabeth jumped up from her place and run towards the shrouds, climbing up to inspect the horizon. Then, the cry of a sailor announced what was that dark blotch ahead of the bow that was getting larger and larger as they sailed towards it.

“Land! Land!” he repeated, “Land! We are in Tortuga’s waters!”

* * *

 

Scarlett had read, heard and been warned about pirates a lot of times in her life. She had pictured them in her mind as filthy, cruel and greedy human beings who had no respect of rules and lives, who lived on ships most of the time - she had also tried to imagine how a gathering harbour of buccaneers could be. However, she had never seen a pirate in her life, let alone a whole town. So great was her amusement once she put foot on the rotting wood of Tortuga’s pier.

Perched up against the side of a hill, the houses of the village overlooked narrow and dirty roads. Sure, there was filth and rubbish in every corner and some of the buildings seemed like they were almost falling apart, but despite the piercing smell that immediately filled Scarlett’s nostrils, it looked like any other town. There were stores and workshops, fountains and squares – the only difference was, of course, the people.  
It was hard to say if someone was sober. Everyone looked drunk to the backbone, and if one managed to walk straight and stand up without the help of a support, a bottle of rum was in their hand. This, to Scarlett’s surprise, didn’t make the pirates look any more dangerous than a bunch of trumps – some did even look stupid as they tumbled and fell on the moist stones of the ground.  
Another thing that she didn’t expect to notice was the presence of women and children – the former as drunk and trashy as the men, the latter running around with dirty faces and toothless smiles.

Elizabeth probably noticed the speechless expression on Scarlett’s face as they walked towards a tavern called Faithful Bride, because she grabbed her arm and pulled her closer to whisper something in her ear.  
“I warrantee that they could slit your throat or rob a ship even after a whole barrel of rum”.  
Scarlett’s eyes widened as she turned paler than the moon that had risen in the meantime.  
“Only if you do or say something wrong, of course” Elizabeth quickly added to calm her down, “so stay close to me and you’ll be alright”.

They entered the tavern and got suddenly overwhelmed by the smell of smoke, sweat and alcohol. On a low stage in the corner a band of four was playing a fast and dogged melody, while prostitutes walked around vulgarly laughing and filling steins and mouths with dark liquor.  
“God” Elizabeth hissed, “Now I remember why I didn’t particularly like this place”.  
Scarlett felt extremely out of place – everyone would surely notice how she didn’t belong there and she was convinced she would have turned into a target for that crowd of despicable people. Elizabeth somehow managed to blend in, but she was shaking and visibly uneasy as anxiety clutched her throat at the though of all the terrible deeds those criminals were able to do.  
She stayed as close to her cousin as possible, until they managed to find a free table and sit down.

“Rum, y’all?” asked a particularly flourishing lady, who approached them soon after.  
Elizabeth threw a few coins on the table and grabbed one of the two glasses the woman was offering them. As she turned to Scarlett with a questioning look, the latter began to stutter.  
“N-no, no, thank you”  
Elizabeth looked at her significantly, her eyebrows lifted up in encouragement.  
“Oh – alright” Scarlett corrected herself, grabbing the glass from the woman, who grinned at her with malice.  
“I see you are new around here, sweetie. What is a petal like ye doing in such a nasty spot?” she asked, curling a strand of Scarlett’s hair around her dirty finger.  
“She’s with me – and I think you should know who I am” Elizabeth interrupted her, taking off the hat she had kept on the whole time. The waitress (was she one?) looked back at her, crossing her arms on her chest as Scarlett sighed of relief.  
“Well well well, the Cap’n Lord is back in town” she replied, an amused smirk of disgust painted on her reddish lips. “I am sorry, cupcake, but you have no power in here. In Tortuga we do not follow any rules, not even those of the sea”.  
As she walked away, Scarlett passed a trembling hand through her hair.  
“Now, how do you plan on finding your Jack Sparrow?” she asked, looking around her. “The faster we make it out of here, the better”.  
Elizabeth grinned, relaxing into her chair and sipping the liquid in her glass. “Give it a couple of minutes”.  
Then she nodded behind Scarlett’s back, who turned around to see the waitress whispering something in the ear of a pirate – he looked towards their table and then proceeded to talk to another one.

The chain went on until a man with a pair of long, grizzled sideburns walked up to them. He had a small monkey seated on his shoulder.  
“Miss Swann” he said with a little bow, “it’s a pleasure to see you again”  
Elizabeth grinned and stood up, hugging the man with sincere affection.  
“Mr. Gibbs! I knew I could find you here. How are you?”  
“Until there’s rum there’s hope” Mr. Gibbs replied with a shrug and a nice smile. “So I suppose I can call myself fortunate. Oh, I see you are accompanied – what a ill-mannered old man I am”  
He turned to Scarlett, offering her a big, rough hand. She turned red, but stood up and warily shook it.  
“Mr. Gibbs, this is my cousin Scarlett” Elizabeth stated.  
“It’s a pleasure, miss. You do look alike, indeed”  
Scarlett murmured a low thank you, but she was somehow comforted by the man’s courtesy.  
“Please, have a seat with us” Elizabeth exclaimed, borrowing a chair from the table next to them.  
Mr. Gibbs thanked her and joined the two young women in the whirling chaos of the tavern.  
“May I ask you what brings you here after… one year, I recall?” he asked to Elizabeth.  
She smirked and bend closer to him in a plotting-like way. “Are you still in Jack’s crew?”  
“Aye” he nodded.  
“Then, I have a proposal for Captain Sparrow”  
The monkey on Mr. Gibbs’ shoulders started squealing, then jumped off of him and ran away. He didn’t seem like he noticed or cared.  
“Miss Swann, we have just returned from a difficult and insidious expedition to the Fountain of Youth. I don’t know if we are ready to set sail right in this moment”  
Elizabeth didn’t give up. “Even if it involves a whole city made of gold and immeasurable wealth?”

“Has someone, by pure chance of destiny, just mentioned a golden city?”  
The conversation between Mr. Gibbs and Elizabeth had been interrupted by another man, which not even Scarlett had noticed appearing. He definitely looked more like a pirate than Mr. Gibbs – his hair was a mass of dreadlocks, thin braids adorned with various beads and a sort of white bone, the whole thing kept away from his face thanks to a red bandana under a leather tricorn. His features where surprisingly attractive and his tanned skin revealed an incredible number of days spent under the sun in the middle of the sea. He also had a pair of black moustaches and a matching braided goatee.  
However, the first thing Scarlett had noticed were his weird movements – he looked on the edge of losing his balance and his hands waved in every direction as he spoke.  
As soon as Elizabeth saw him, a warm smile spread on her lips.  
“Hello, Jack”  
“Long time no seen, darlin’. And this is lovely young lady is…?” He asked, turning towards Scarlett with a crooked smile.  
“I’m Elizabeth’s cousin – Scarlett” she replied, avoiding the piercing pair of eyes outlined by a think line of kohl.  
“Enchanted” he replied while removing a chair from under a sleeping man at the table next to them. He didn’t even wake up, but kept snoring on the floor of the Faithful Bride.

“So, back to the gold” Jack insisted, rolling up the sleeves of his worn out linen shirt as he sat down. There were several tattoos on his arms and right under an inked sparrow flying across a rising (or setting?) sun, Scarlett noticed a P-shaped scar. It was the pirate brand, and Scarlett immediately looked away.  
“Back to the gold” echoed Elizabeth, flattening the map of South America on the table. “Have you ever heard of El Dorado, Jack?”  
“I might have. Maybe. Perhaps. Not completely, totally, entirely sure” he replied, cautiously. Scarlett wondered if the use of all those synonyms was really necessary.  
“I think I know where to find it – and I need your help to reach it” Elizabeth stated under her voice, “and all the gold we’ll come across will be yours. I promise”.  
“This certainly sounds interesting” Jack Sparrow observed, caressing the two little braids that hanged from his goatee. “But enlighten me, love – how come the King of pirates and previously Pirate Lord of Singapore needs me help?” he added suspiciously.  
“You know these waters better than anyone else. And I can’t really reach the Viceroyalty of New Granada without a ship or a crew, can I?” Elizabeth replied.  
The pirate didn’t answer. He kept staring at the map with a frown, probably pondering the offer he had just received.  
“What’s the trick, love?” he then asked, pointing a bejewelled finger at Elizabeth. “You already fooled me once, I recall. Why should I let my crew and ship be available to this said expedition?”  
Elizabeth blushed slightly, but managed to keep her eyes up. “Jack, we have already been through this. I’m promising you a whole city of gold, and I don’t think you plan on staying here in Tortuga for too long – unless you’re back in business with the East India Trading Company, which, I suppose, is still particularly interested in you”.  
Jack Sparrow visibly shivered as Elizabeth mentioned the Company, but he collected himself quickly and leaned closer to her.  
“Why do you want to find El Dorado?”  
The girl lowered her gaze for the first time, glancing at the only ring on she was wearing.  
“Oh” Jack sighed knowingly, “it has something to do with that doomed, cursed, slightly unlucky husband of yours”  
“There is a temple in El Dorado” Elizabeth hissed, “it holds an enigma and those who solve it can make one wish and keep all the treasures of the city. I will leave you everything, I don’t care for gold – but I intend to use that wish to save Will”.  
The pirate shook his head. “I knew you wouldn’t have lasted ten years” he murmured before standing up.  
“And may I ask you why is this pretty little cousin of yours joining the expedition? No offence, love” he quickly added, turning towards Scarlett with a curious glare, “but you seem like an odd one out here”.  
“I – I am a student in Oxford’s University” Scarlett muttered, hindered by the depth of Captain Sparrow’s eyes. “And I happen to know something… I mean, I have read a lot about pre-Columbian myths and tribes and I think I might help when we… if we find the temple” she finally concluded, blushing violently. The mocking smirk that had started to appear on Jack’s lips, which let the sparkle of a few golden teeth filter, made her feel like he was jeering at her and her words. He was right, though. She was indeed a fish out of water.  
“I see, I see” Jack replied, going back to the map. “We set sail at dawn, no time for latecomers. Savvy?” he finally stated, walking away with wavering steps as if he was walking on a ship’s deck in the middle of a storm.

Elizabeth sighed in relief, smiling.  
“I knew we would made it”  
“To another one, miss Swann” Mr. Gibbs exclaimed, grabbing his stein and lifting it towards the middle of the table.  
“To another one” Elizabeth echoed, clanking her glass to his.  
“To another one” Scarlett joined them with her stein. She didn’t drink the liquor, though – her stomach had clenched into an anxious grip. The first thoughts of regret were starting to surface and her mind ran back to Richard.  
What was he doing? Was he still after her? She started to think that maybe his harsh letter was instead a sign of sincere concern and suddenly pangs of homesickness started piercing her chest.  
But it was too late to take her word back now, and Scarlett didn’t want to let Elizabeth down – she could see in her cousin’s eyes the hope of getting the love of her life and the father of her child back and she really wanted to help her.  
_I’ll send a letter to Richard before we leave, to reassure him and let him know where we’re headed,_ Scarlett mentally decided. She thought that maybe, if he knew her plans, he would understand better this time. Was she being too naïve? Maybe, but she had to try and give him another chance for the sake of their marriage – which would surely need to be postponed, by the way. But true love doesn’t need a schedule, does it?

Scarlett’s heavy thoughts got interrupted by Mr. Gibbs’s slurred speech – the alcohol had started to show its effects.  
“You ladies can use my room here at the tavern tonight” he said, cut off by a hiccup. “It’s on the first floor. I think I will probably sleep on the Pearl given our close departure… if I can reach it” he concluded with a drunken smile.  
Elizabeth laughed, amused “You should go now if you want to sleep it off, Mr. Gibbs. We’ll see you in the morning – and thank you”.  
“Oh, I think I will linger here for a while, still” the man replied thoughtfully. “But here’s the key. Farewell, miss Swann… and miss Swann” he concluded, bursting into laughter as he handed out a stained key.

Scarlett and Elizabeth started making their way towards the stairs, disentangling themselves through the loud crowd. They had almost made it to the other side of the large room when Scarlett felt something pulling the hem of her gown. She turned around to see a young blond boy, probably around 11 or 12 years old, looking up at her with wide, light blue eyes.  
“Can I come with you, ma’am?” he asked pleadingly.  
Scarlett stopped, and wondered what he meant.  
“Coming where, kid?”  
“To El Dorado” he simply stated, gripping on her dress again “Please, can I come with you?”  
“Scarlett?” Elizabeth exclaimed. She had reached the top of the first flight of stairs, but as she saw what the other girl had stayed behind she run back down.  
“Scarlett, come on. We need some rest” she said, and then noticed the boy. “Who is this?”  
“I- I don’t know, he asked if he could come with us”  
Elizabeth sighed. “Star, he’s probably trying to rob you. Let’s go”  
“No, ma’am, I am a good boy. I promise I will be a good boy if you take me with you” the kid replied, now on the verge of tears.  
Scarlett leaned closer to Elizabeth, whispering in her ear.  
“He heard about El Dorado”  
Elizabeth kneeled down, at the boy’s eye level. She wasn’t angry, but she spoke with a somehow severe tone.  
“You know, little monkey, that it’s very impolite to eavesdrop other people’s conversations? Why don’t you go back home? I’ll give you a schilling” she said, taking a little coin from her pocket and offering it to the boy.  
He didn’t take it, though.  
“Ma’am, I have been there – I have seen El Dorado. I can help you, but please ma’am take me with you”.

* * *

 

Elizabeth locked the door of the room and suddenly all the noise coming from downstairs disappeared.  
Scarlett was sitting on the bed, the little boy sitting beside her. Elizabeth approached them and gently grabbed the chin of the kid, turning his face towards her.  
“What’s your name?” she asked him quietly.  
“Tim” he whispered, his eyes avoiding hers.  
“Tim, have you really been to El Dorado? Do you know where it is?”  
The boy didn’t reply – instead, he hid his face in Scarlett’s lap. Instinctively, she surrounded his shoulders with her arm and started to rub his back. She had always had a soft spot for children.  
“Tim” Elizabeth insisted, receiving nothing but silence.  
“As I thought” she sighed. “Tim, why did you lie to us? You have never been there, have you? I bet you don’t even know what it is”.  
Silence.  
“Tim, why do you want to come with us?” Scarlett asked, grabbing the boy from his shoulders to lift him up and look at him in his eyes.  
The boy flinched at the tighter grip and let out a teary shriek.  
“Please, don’t hit me! I won’t lie again I promise! Please” he begged, warm tears running down his cheeks.  
“We would never hurt you!” Elizabeth reassured him, placing a hand on his knee.  
“Are you in pain?” Scarlett asked him, worried.  
The boy nodded, sniffling and dabbing at his nose with the dirty sleeve of his shirt.  
“Show me where you’re hurt” Elizabeth softly told him.  
Tim lifted up the hem of his top and Scarlett startled at the sight of a bunch of bruises on his belly. He proceeded to roll up his trousers, showing black and blue spots on his legs. He was about to show his arms too, but Elizabeth stopped him.  
“Enough, Tim” she told him, managing to smile. The look in her eyes, though, was now sad and worried. “Where are your parents?”  
Tim shrugged. “I don’t know, ma’am. I live on a ship”  
Scarlett and Elizabeth looked at each other, wondering what to do.  
“Tim, darling, why don’t you lay here and sleep for a while?” Scarlett said, caressing the boy’s head.  
“Can I come?” he asked again, but this time his eyes were slowly closing.  
Scarlett helped him down and folded the covers around his thin little body.  
“Yes, now sleep” she whispered in his ear.  
A wide smile spread on the boy’s face. “Aye. Thank you, ma’am”.

Elizabeth and Scarlett walked away from the bed and started murmuring in the dim light of the room.  
“Star, I don’t know if we can take him”  
“Liz – have you seen those bruises? He’s been hit”  
“Yes, I did. And trust me, I am as upset as you. But he is just a child – are you sure you want to take him on board? On a pirate ship?”  
Scarlett nodded. “You said that your friends are pirates and good men. If this is true, they’ll do him no harm and he’ll be surely safer with us than whit whoever did that”  
Elizabeth sighed, still unconvinced. Suddenly, the thought of her son flashed in her mind – she was a mother now, and she could understand Scarlett’s point of view. Her heart hurt already because of the distance, so she couldn’t bear to leave behind another innocent life.  
“Alright. We’ll take him with us”.  
Scarlett immediately hugged her tight. “It’s the right thing to do”.  
“I don’t think Jack will share our opinion, but yes. It is the right thing indeed” Elizabeth stated, as she walked back to her bed.

Scarlett bit her bottom lip. She hadn’t thought about it already. She was a little intimidated by Sparrow – maybe because he was one of the most famous and wanted pirates still at sea, or maybe it was because of his scars and weapons and tattoos. He didn’t look totally dangerous and she trusted Elizabeth if she said he was their friend, but he was still a pirate and if pirates were good they wouldn’t be so feared, right?

 

“We’ll make it work” Scarlett said, before blowing out the last candle and settle down next to Tim.


	6. The Black Pearl

Surprisingly, Tortuga wasn’t at all different by day.  
As Elizabeth and Scarlett walked towards the piers, the chaos and drunken confusion that had welcomed them the evening before was still there. Who hadn’t passed out during the night and wasn’t lying in the middle of the dirty roads while snoring was now struggling to move huge barrels of rum, helping his mates to clean the ships, engaging in scuffles or performing other tasks – everything in the alcoholic dizziness of an hangover.

Tim was walking beside the girls, silently, which was strange. That morning, in fact, he had woken them up jumping on their beds and pulling their nightgowns – he was itching to leave and he couldn’t wait to see the ship he had heard so many legends about, the Black Pearl. Now, however, he was almost hiding behind Scarlett’s dress.  
“Is everything alright, Tim?” she asked when he suddenly jumped and grabbed her waist. They were halfway through the jetty, walking next to a massive vessel.  
“This is my ship” he whispered, without slacking off of her.  
Scarlett hurled a meaningful glare to Elizabeth, who started walking faster and gestured to her to do the same.  
“Don’t worry Tim, it’s not your ship anymore. You’re with us now” Scarlett said to the kid, grabbing his hand. “Now hurry up”.  
The three quickly marched towards the end of the dock, where Mr. Gibbs was waiting for them with a rowboat. They had almost made it when a slurred yell made them turn around – a shady man, whose wooden leg and eye patch made him look everything but a merchant, was following them while screaming slurs of all kind. As he got closer, they realised he was shouting at Tim.  
“You little brat, where do you think you’re going? I’m gonna beat the shit out of you if you don’t come back immediately!”  
The girls and Tim run through the last few metres of the dock, jumping directly in the boat. Mr. Gibbs looked confused and was about to ask something, but Elizabeth and Scarlett screamed at the same time to come in with them and start rowing.  
Luckily, the man who was after them was drunk (it wasn’t a surprise, obviously) and he stumbled before he could reach them. As their boat floated away from Tortuga’s shore, the raging yells of Tim’s now ex-Captain became nothing but a fading background noise and, while he shrank in the distance, the majestic backlit silhouette of the Black Pearl grew bigger and bigger.  
As they got closer, Scarlett noticed the figure of Jack Sparrow leaning on the rail, waiting for them to come on board.

* * *

 

The Black Pearl was a magnificent ship, that had to be said. Its beauty relied in the scrapes and chips of the dark wood, in the patches that fixed the holes in its pitch black sails, in the stays corroded by the sea salt. The history that impregnated it was almost tangible.

Scarlett realised that as soon as she put her feet on the solid ground of the main deck, after a steep climb along its side that had left her almost breathless. Even if it was just the first time she saw it, the Black Pearl had already started to exercise a certain charm on her – maybe it was the incredible amount of legends surrounding it or the unbelievable adventures Elizabeth had told her about. The thing is, Scarlett kept staring agape at her surroundings until the voice of the Captain interrupted her observations.

“Welcome on the Black Pearl, ladies” Jack Sparrow exclaimed, his arms wide open. The crew was setting up everything for the departure, but with a loud cough he suddenly gained their attention.  
“Gentlemen –” he started, cut off by the annoyed glare of a young black woman.  
“… and gentlewomen” he corrected himself rolling his dark eyes. “You may want to greet an old acquaintance of yours and her lovely companion, miss…?” he hesitated, nodding towards Scarlett.  
“Scarlett” she replied. _Well, he has already forgotten my name. Great start_ , she also thought.  
“… miss Scarlett” he concluded, before turning to Elizabeth. “You already know the way to the cabins, love. There’s only one free, however, but feel free to arrange that as you wish”.  
Elizabeth nodded and walked away to hail her old friends. Scarlett was about to follow her when the voice of the captain made her suddenly turn.  
“Bloody hell, and what is that now?” Jack exclaimed, pointing towards Tim – he had been hiding behind Scarlett all the time.  
She grabbed the kid’s hand and took a breath before answering. “His name is Tim. He’s coming with us because he’s not safe where…”  
“Wait wait wait” Jack cut her off, his dirty fingers massaging his temple. “Allow me to set one thing clear, darlin’. This is a ship, right? And the captain makes the rules on the ship. Now this happens to be me ship and this makes me the captain of the ship. Thus, being the captain of said ship, I make the rules. Savvy?”  
Scarlett frowned at the roundabout speech he had just given her.  
“The boy can’t stay” he added, hushing a scared Tim towards the plank.  
“Mr. Sparrow, please, you can’t… he’s just a kid!” Scarlett replied, hurrying behind him and trying to grab Tim’s hand.  
“Jack” Elizabeth intervened, having noticed the worry in her cousin’s voice. “He’s hurt. We can’t send him away – he’ll be good, I promise. Scarlett and I will take care of him and you won’t even be aware of his presence”  
Jack stopped and turned around, his hands placed on Tim’s shoulders. The poor thing was terrified and didn’t even try to cry.  
“Sweethearts, there is no place for him. We’re full, packed – he’ll have to sleep on the ground and renounce to eat” he said, gesturing weirdly and quickly shifting his weight from one feet to the other.  
“He’ll sleep with me” Scarlett blurted out, “and we can share the food. I’m never too hungry when I’m at the seaside”.  
Jack Sparrow laughed, his golden teeth shining in the sunlight. “Miss Scarlett, you have clearly never been in the middle of the ocean after a hefty day of pulling, flapping and laveering”.  
“Please, captain Sparrow” Scarlett insisted.  
“Erm… NO” he replied, going back to pushing Tim towards the railing.  
Scarlett’s eyes filled with tears and she was about to ran towards Tim, but Elizabeth stopped her by grabbing her arm. Tim had grasped Jack’s sleeve and had put on his irresistible puppy eyes.  
“Please, Mr. Sparrow. I will be good, I swear”  
Jack looked down at the boy, visibly torn. Scarlett watched silently, her heart beating faster – she already had a soft spot for the kid.  
“Bugger” Jack exclaimed, throwing a fist at the wooden balustrade and regretting it soon after with a painful grimace.  
“Alright. Damn it. If these are the conditions, then we may keep him… for a while” he concluded, letting go of Tim, who ran back into Scarlett’s arms.  
Jack walked away hissing and holding his hurt hand, while Elizabeth proceeded to introduce the crew to a happy and surprised Scarlett.

“It’s pleasure to meet you, miss Scarlett” a lanky man with a dull eye enunciated, rushing to her first with a deep bow. “My name is Ragetti and it will be a pleasure to be at your service”.  
“Nice to meet you, Ragetti” Scarlett replied, slightly astonished by the unexpected politeness of that presentation.  
A smaller and stockier man pushed the lanky one aside, grabbing Scarlett’s hand and kissing it. “Leave him alone, miss. I am Pintel, and I can guarantee my services are way better than his” he stated, winking at her.  
Scarlett couldn’t even reply that an even tinier lad made his way through the crew – he was surely a dwarf.  
“Marty here, miss Swann” he exclaimed, “and it’s needless to say that good things come in small…”  
He was cut off by a motley parrot that flew on his bald head, starting to pick on it. Another man, older than the previous ones, approached Scarlett and offered her his hand without a word. As she cautiously took it, the parrot started shrieking “Cotton! Cotton!” and the man grinned, showing a crooked and most empty line of teeth.

Scarlett was taken aback as the crew burst into a wild laugh. She turned towards Elizabeth with a questioning gaze, just to find her chuckling along. The racket didn’t last long, however – a young and incredibly beautiful black woman cut everyone off with a yell.  
“Oi oi oi!” she said, approaching Scarlett, “you bloody bunch of crooks, laughing in the face of our guest with your sleazes. Miss Swann, please, forgive them. They’re not used to having respectable individuals around”.  
Scarlett didn’t really get what she was saying, but a wave of comfort hit her at the thought that there was another woman in addition to her and Elizabeth on board.  
“My name is Anamaria. Welcome on board” she said, extending her hand towards Scarlett, who shook it without hesitation.  
“Come, Star, I’ll show you your cabin – since you’ll share it with Tim, an hammock will be enough for me” Elizabeth stated, taking her cousin under her arm and walking away from the crew.

“I surely didn’t expect them to be so kind. You were right, Liz, they’re not that bad” Scarlett observed as they walked across the main deck, towards the crew’s quarters. Tim was strolling behind them, touching and observing every little thing with ooohs and aaaahs scattered every now and then.  
“Oh, Star, I can assure you that they’re hardly like this, normally” Elizabeth laughed, pushing the wooden shutters and proceeding into the galleon’s interior. “But since there’s a new woman on board, they’ll do everything to claim her theirs. They won’t hurt you, but pay attention anyway”.  
Scarlett frowned as she realized the meaning of Liz’s words. “Thank god there’s Anamaria, too”.  
Elizabeth lifted her eyebrow, throwing a glance at the other from over her shoulder.  
“Oh, well… she’s not a fan of men, if I recall correctly. So she’s included in the warning” she replied, leaving Scarlett agape.

In the meantime, they had walked through a narrow arcade, dodging barrels and boxes with any kind of content, and were now in front of a door.  
“Here we are” Elizabeth said, pushing it to reveal a tiny but comfortable bunk. It had a queen-size, built-in bed, which occupied almost the whole area of the berth. On the wooden wall across the entrance there was a small round hatch from which it was possible to see the waves and, over the headboard of the bed, a few shelves had been roughly pinned.  
“It will suit our needs perfectly – am I right Tim?” Scarlett asked the kid, who was already jumping on the mattress.  
“Yes, miss Scarlett!” he panted, letting himself fall on the only pillow.  
Elizabeth smiled, then placed a hand on Scarlett’s shoulder. “Are you alright? Sure you want to do this?”.  
She nodded, trying not to think too much about the consequences her choice was about to bring.

* * *

 

Scarlett had quickly adjusted to the routine on the Black Pearl.  
The sunrays that filtered through the hatch and the screams of the crew always made her wake up early; she got used to sneak out of the cabin without making too much noise, so that Tim could sleep for a bit more. She then headed towards the kitchen to grab an apple and some soft cheese, which she loved to eat on the main deck.  
The rest of the day was spent between studying, conversing with Elizabeth, keeping an eye on Tim and playing with cards or dices with the crew in the evening.

Scarlett wished she could do more on board to help the maintenance of the ship, but her little knowledge on the topic made her feel quite useless. She often walked around asking if there was something she could do, but nothing more than bringing a bag from the stern to the bow of the ship or checking out the inventory was ever appointed to her. At first she feared it was a lack of trust towards her, but after a few weeks or so she realized that it was better that way. Anamaria often repeated that she was a guest on the Pearl and, if it was the case, the crew would have surely told her what to do.

Thus, her relationship with the crew quickly improved and Scarlett soon came to observe how the members looked more like a big family. They had gone through the best and the worst and even if they still managed to get on each other’s nerves quite often, it was tangible that there was a bond that united them all. She was starting to see beyond the label that had been attached to them – both metaphorically and physically. Soon, even their attempts at seducing her became nothing more than cheeky jokes, especially after she clearly specified that she was engaged.

Her mind went back to Richard more than she wanted to, to be honest. She couldn’t stop thinking about him, actually, and if one day she missed him to death, the following was full of rage and regret for the letter she had sent him before leaving for New Granada. She still hadn’t told Elizabeth about it, and it wasn’t clear if she had omitted this detail because she felt guilty for something that was turning out to be not that careful or because she thought it didn’t really matter.

In any case, Elizabeth was too busy to be distracted with a matter that didn’t really concern her. When she wasn’t properly helping the crew, she spent most of the time at the helm, next to Jack, checking the maps and arguing with him about the expedition. As Scarlett recalled, he had some kind of experience with Aztec gold and sometimes, while she walked next to them, she heard him ask Elizabeth how sure she was of the absence of curses on the gold they were going after. As Scarlett noticed, Elizabeth tried to avoid that topic but it was clear that she had no idea about curses in El Dorado, nor she seemed to care – everything she worried about was getting safely to the wish.  
That’s why Scarlett had decided to start reading her book from the beginning for the nth time, trying now to focus on any information concerning curses, banes or traps – if there was something she could be useful for, that was it.

It didn’t take long for her to find what she was looking for.  
It was more or less the end of the third week when walked up the steps that led to the higher deck, her hand holding the book with the index squeezed in the middle as an improvised bookmark.  
Scarlett rarely went up there, fearing that she might hinder the captain or disturb him. She didn’t really have a valid reason for that, since she still hadn’t got to know Jack Sparrow. They didn’t talk much because he was closer to Elizabeth and always busy doing any kind of stuff – he had a very captain-ish aura around him and he looked more intimidating than the rest of the crew. Or, at least, that’s what Scarlett kept repeating to herself.  
Jack Sparrow, after all, might have seemed like a cruel criminal – but most of the times he appeared to Scarlett as someone lost on the blurred boundary between fun and craziness. However, her instinct suggested her to stay away from him – and that’s what she had done… so far.

“There’s no curse” she said, rejoicing.  
Elizabeth, who was laying in the sun on a bench behind the helm, lifted herself up immediately. Jack, who was guiding the ship, looked away from the squared compass that was in his hand and looked straight in Scarlett’s eyes. Every time that he did it, she felt an uncomfortable feeling inside her, as if he was looking directly inside of her mind – probably it was the kohl around his eyes that made them look so deep. And the worst thing was that once you had connected with them it was nearly impossible to look away, as if they were a magnet.  
“There’s no curse” she repeated, “on the gold of El Dorado”.  
“You’ve found something in the book?” Elizabeth exclaimed, running up to her visibly impatient to know more.  
“Yes, there’s a passage about it… Not too much, but it’s still something” Scarlett said, unconsciously shifting her eyes from her cousin to Jack’s, but he was looking ahead again. This time, though, his moustaches were lifted up in a cheeky smirk.  
“Would you please read it out loud, love?” he asked, ready to listen.  
Scarlett opened the book, leaning against the railing so she faced Jack’s right side.  
“ _As it is known, El Dorado has still never been reached by modern explorers. Its existence has been questioned and proofs have been looked for, but no tangible trace of it has surfaced so far. The only hint that suggests the presence of said empire, but that is lost in the myth itself, is the chest found by Cortés and his crew.  
The legend says Cortés found 882 pieces of gold, that he subtracted forcefully from the Aztecs – in exchange, the tribe cursed the gold to warrantee a painful immortality to be repaid with a blood sacrifice_”  
Scarlett paused to check the reaction of Elizabeth and Jack. They were looking at each other with a knowing smirk. Scarlett wondered if all that confidence between the two was appropriate, but she immediately shook her head as she reminded it derived from all the time they had already spent together.  
“ _Did that chest come from the golden city of El Dorado? Probably, according to the historical sources and the context of the legend. Does it mean that the whole wealth of the city, if it exists, is doomed as that treasure was? No._  
The gold of El Dorado, in fact, is supposed to be accessible only to the innocent ones – thus, no further protection is needed. If the hidden empire is still uncovered, it is probably because no explorer has proved himself to be innocent enough to have access to the Aztec treasures”.

Scarlett slapped the book close. She was pretty satisfied with her findings, even if there was nothing properly relevant.  
“That’s great news” Jack exclaimed, one hand gripping firmly on the helm as his eyes narrowed on the horizon. “Looks like our deal is valid, miss Turner”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought of this as a filler chapter, and probably the next one will be so too, so sorry if it lacks on proper action. BUT don't worry! Everything is going to be much more intense later. 
> 
> I also made a slight edit to the last paragraph of the previous chapter - if you want, check it out! If not, it won't make a big difference :)


	7. Swords And Whispers

After the revelation that there was no collateral effect of evil nature on the Aztec gold of El Dorado, the faint but still present tension on board disappeared completely.  
Jack stopped squinting his eyes at Elizabeth with suspicious glares and he even started interacting more with Scarlett, now that she had proved she wasn’t just an elegant ornament brought on board with no applicable purpose.

One evening after dinner, when the rest of the crew was resting or getting drunk, Elizabeth and her were practising with their swords while Tim was playing with some pieces of wood in a corner. Suddenly, from the captain’s cabin, Jack appeared on deck with a bottle of rum and, leaning on the rail, he stared at them with an amused sneer.  
Scarlett didn’t notice him at first – she was too focused on keeping the blade of Liz’s sword at a safe distance. But then, as she tiptoed backwards to find shelter, he caught a glimpse of Jack’s boot; she lifted her eyes, suddenly embarrassed at the thought of being observed at her noob fencing, and in the rush of putting herself together she did not manage to avoid a rope and trip on it.  
“Damn it” she hissed, immediately covering her mouth, blushing – she needed to cut that cursing habit off before she lost control of it.  
“Need help, love?” Jack asked, offering her his hand. Scarlett reluctantly accepted it, trying to keep some decent distance between them.  
“Thank you” she replied, lowering her eyes.  
“Scarlett! I’m sorry! Are you hurt?” Elizabeth exclaimed worriedly, rushing towards her.  
Scarlett forced herself to smile in spite of the embarrassment.  
“No, I am fine – maybe it’s time to…”  
“…work a bit on your footwork” Jack concluded her sentence, placing the bottle of room in balance on a barrel and exulting when it didn’t crash on the ground.  
Scarlett turned even redder at the thought of confronting her basic skills with an experienced pirate’s.  
“I think we’ll have to postpone this, Mr. Sparrow –” she tried to oppose, but he had already grasped his sword.  
“Miss Swann, I definitely and honestly hold to be true the fact that you can indeed handle a few more strikes and I further consider that this might turn into a positively useful moment of learning” he cut her off.  
“But...” she insisted, looking at Elizabeth to find some support, but her cousin gave her an encouraging nod. Tim was also ready to enjoy the show, having abandoned his improvised toys.  
“First of all” Jack started, approaching her with his unsheathed blade, “as interesting as Mr. Sparrow may sound, it is Jack to you – or Captain at most. Savvy?”.  
Scarlett barely blocked his attack as he conducted her around the deck. The crew, attracted by the clashing sound of steel against steel, had surfaced from the galleys and their quarters to see what was going on.

Scarlett, in spite of any expectation, was handling the duel pretty decently – it was clear that Jack was keeping it simple, but her previous practice sessions with Elizabeth were starting to pay off.  
“Move your feet quicker, keep your balance” he kept shouting at her, entertained by her still unsteady movements.  
“I know!” she exclaimed, turning around the mast to confuse him and exploit his eternal drunken dizziness – it obviously didn’t work, as he waved on the other side anticipating her move and trapping her.  
“So you fancy playing dirty” he observed, the flat side of his blade placed on her jaw, “just like your cousin, eh?”  
Scarlett’s heart started thumping faster as she found herself so close to the pirate. He heavily smelt of rum, salt and sweat, but it wasn’t as bad as it seemed – it was actually bearable, but Scarlett was too frightened to notice it as all she could focus on was the cold steel against her burning skin.  
Jack noticed the fear in her eyes and slowly backed away.  
“You need to fence a little more, love” he stated as he approached Elizabeth and surrounded her shoulders with an arm.  
“We need a little talk, Lizzie” he whispered in her ear as he directed her towards his cabin. Elizabeth stopped to turn towards Scarlett, her gaze questioning if she was alright, but she girl waved her hand to let her know she could go.

As the two disappeared in the darkening night and the crew dispersed once again, Mr. Gibbs approached Scarlett carrying in his hand the bottle of rum Jack had left on the barrel.  
“Maybe a drop of this will help” he proposed, offering her the thick liquor. Scarlett hesitated as it was clearly too bold for her to indulge in the alcohol, but after all she needed something to warm her up and relax her muscles – she was still shaking from the effort, the scare and the fact that a pirate had just violently invaded her personal space.  
“Yes, thank you Mr. Gibbs” she finally said, sitting on a step that lead to the higher deck.  
Mr. Gibbs shrugged and sat next to her, soon joined by Marty, Pintel and Ragetti. Tim toddled towards them yawning and settled in Scarlett’s lap.  
They stayed there chatting mindlessly, while Scarlett tried not to wince at the sharp taste of the rum.  
“What did he mean?” she suddenly asked, turning to Mr. Gibbs – he was most likely the crew member she trusted the most, as he seemed to know many things and be quite wise. It was clear that even Jack trusted him deeply.  
“About what, miss Swann?” Mr. Gibbs asked.  
“When he assumed I like to play dirty, just like Elizabeth”  
Mr. Gibbs sighed, while Ragetti, Pintel and Marty looked at each other with a meaningful look.  
“What do you know about the time your cousin Elizabeth has spent on board of the Black Pearl, miss Swann?”  
Scarlett frowned in an attempt to recall the main parts of the adventures Liz had told her about.  
“First there was a curse, then you’ve had some business with Davy Jones about his heart and a chest to be opened by a key… if I am not wrong he sent a kraken after you and Jack chose to stay on the Pearl and he died, then – ”  
“I see” Mr. Gibbs kindly interrupted her, “you miss a quite interesting bit of the story that explains what you want to know. Right after we attacked the kraken by firing the cargo, we all threw ourselves in the last longboat. When I got down there, Jack and Elizabeth were still on the deck and, as you already know, she was the last one to leave as Jack stayed. Later on, we found out that –”  
“He did not get a chance to choose, really” Pintel cut Mr. Gibbs off, receiving a deadly glare in exchange.  
“I am trying to tell a story here, you dirty bastard!” Mr. Gibbs exclaimed, recomposing himself immediately when he remembered the presence of Scarlett.  
“I am sorry, miss Swann, but I don’t fancy being interrupted like that” he added, kicking Pintel in the side – the pirate winced in pain, but didn’t move. He wanted to listen, and so did Scarlett.  
“Don’t worry, Mr. Gibbs. Please, go on” she said. She had heard so many slurs and curses during the last month that one more wasn’t going to make her as shocked as she was in the beginning.  
“Alright, where did I left… Aye, so, we later found out that our captain had been forced onto the Black Pearl. I swear it felt strange in my ears that he had chosen to sink with the ship – mark my words, he is a good and honest man in the end, so a last glimpse of loyalty to the Pearl would have been possible. But I know him too well and his relentless attachment to life has always prevaricated any other need”  
Scarlett frowned, confused. “But how was he forced to stay?”  
“Oh, right” Mr. Gibbs continued, this time a bit more hesitantly. “He had been fooled and handcuffed to the main mast”.  
“But who did it?” Scarlett insisted, struggling to put the pieces together.  
Pintel and Ragetti looked at each other, and they looked kind of… worried? Marty, in the meantime, was picking at his nails, avoiding Scarlett’s inquiring eyes.  
Mr. Gibbs sighed before continuing, caressing his grey sideburns. “It was Elizabeth who did it. From what I know and what I heard, she seduced him with a kiss and lead him to the mast – there were handcuffs tied to it already and she took a chance”.  
Scarlett stared at him speechless. What had she just heard? Everything was unbelievable, from the fact that she had fooled someone and condemn them to death, to the idea of her kissing a pirate… and _while_ she was engaged to Will, to whom she had declared her love! Scarlett couldn’t wrap her head around it, but she couldn’t find a reason not to believe either.  
Seeing her so aghast, Mr. Gibbs placed a hand on her shoulder to comfort her.  
“Miss Swann, your cousin had the best intentions – sure, that was not the best path to take, but she did want to save the rest of us and I can assure you it’s all settled now”  
Scarlett looked up at him. “Then why did he still mention it?”  
Mr. Gibbs didn’t know what to reply and Scarlett turned to face the darkness beyond the rail. How could Elizabeth have acted like that? Betray the man she loved and fool the one she claimed as a friend? And why with a kiss?  
“Did they ever… I mean, Elizabeth and Jack…” she suddenly asked.  
“NO!” Mr. Gibbs exclaimed, along with the others.  
“I always guessed Jack was somehow… curious about her” Marty said, “but her heart was always for Will”  
“But she found the captain rather interesting, too” Ragetti added, gaining a kick from Pintel.  
“Friendly speaking” he hissed in pain, correcting himself.  
Scarlett shook her head.  
“Well, she failed to mention that” she finally concluded, stroking Tim’s hair – he had fallen asleep in her lap and she suddenly felt the heavy weight of tiredness falling on her, too.  
“I think it’s enough for today” she whispered, grabbing the little kid in her arms. “Thank you, Gibbs, for your company… and honesty. And thank you too, lads. Goodnight”.  
The four men greeted her with a bow and she finally headed towards her cabin, even if she already knew it would have been hard to sleep.

* * *

 

The sun rose above the sea, glittering waves hitting the sides of the Pearl as it sailed fiercely across the ocean.  
The bright blue sky and the breeze that filled the black canvases promised it to be a wonderful day – however, as Scarlett woke up from a short, dreamless and agitated sleep, her she found her mood to be completely in contrast with the weather.

She had spent the whole night turning in the bed, frequently but cautiously in order not to wake Tim up, and overthinking about what Gibbs had told her. After all, as she walked out on the deck in the sunlight, it wasn’t that big of a deal – everyone makes mistakes and Elizabeth had her best intentions. Plus, that Jack Sparrow had proved to deserve a lesson.  
The _thing_ might have been settled between the two, but Scarlett needed to talk to Elizabeth about it, just to get it off her chest. At least, she wanted to know Liz hadn’t told her since, apparently, it didn’t mean too much.

As she strode across the ship looking for her cousin, she stumbled into Anamaria.  
“Good morning, miss Swann” the girl greeted her, a roll of cord in her arms.  
“You can call me Scarlett” she replied. Now that she had spent more or less a month in their company, it sounded weird to be called _miss Swann_ all the time. Scarlett had never fancied formalities that much.  
“Well then” Anamaria said, throwing the rope on a jag that stuck out of the rail, “good morning, Scarlett. Did you sleep well? You seem tired”.  
Scarlett started fingering the pendant on her necklace. Was it that evident?  
“I had some troubles, yes, but nothing worrisome – do you know where I can find Elizabeth?”  
Anamaria lifted her eyebrows, crossing her arms on the chest.  
“She’s in Jack’s cabin”  
Scarlett almost chocked on her own breath. Why on heart was she in his cabin? Was it proper? Why couldn’t they discuss whatever they needed to talk about outside, like they had always done – so maybe she could join them?  
It didn’t take long for Scarlett to wonder if she had spent the night there…  
“Thank you” she muttered, leaving a sneering Anamaria to her duties while she stormed towards the captain’s quarters.

The door, of course was closed – but not locked. It meant nothing secret was happening in there… didn’t it?  
Scarlett rose her fist to knock on the wooden surface, but she froze as she caught a glimpse of two distorted silhouettes behind the ground glass. They were apparently Jack and Elizabeth and they were… leaning on each other? What was going on?  
As Scarlett expected the worst and tried to knock again to interrupt whatever was occurring inside, Jack’s voice reached her ears as he yelled something dark and square – a map maybe?  
Scarlett sighed of relief as she realized that they were probably examining the map together and for a second she felt guilty for thinking so maliciously about her cousin.  
“Damn it, Elizabeth” Jack exclaimed again, and this time his words came out clearer. “How couldn’t you think about that?”  
It was hard to see inside, but Scarlett tried to bring into focus the room – slowly, she started to recognize some pieces of furniture and without even realizing it she found her cheek brushing against the cold glass. She really didn’t want to eavesdrop, but she was too curious to know what they were arguing about and she had a certain feeling that if she came inside they would have changed the subject.

“Jack, I… We’ll find a way. We always do” Elizabeth replied, but the confident tone she used to have was now forced.  
“I know Calypso – thick as thieves, we were. But once is enough and I do not plan to have issues with that goddess” Jack stated, turning around towards her. “Because that is what she is, Lizzie. A goddess. A female entity with powers that can bound you to eternity”  
“Isn’t eternity what you’ve always strived for?” Elizabeth asked, ironically.  
“Not _that_ specific kind of eternity, love. I once thought that being the captain of the Flying Dutchman could be the greatest finale for my career, but I do not particularly fancy ferrying dead people to Fiddler’s Green” Jack retorted.  
“And I am quite sure of the fact that Calypso won’t take it well once we – you, by making use of the wish, will steal the Dutchman’s captain without providing a valid substitute”.  
Elizabeth stood silent then. She was trying to find a solution, but nothing came to her mind.

Scarlett leaned her back to the door, sliding down until she was sitting on the ground. She was trawling every notion, every myth and every legend she had studied in the past years, focusing on the naval stories and readings she had stumbled into at Oxford. It didn’t help.  
Her mind started to shift from the Calypso issue to another impelling question: why hadn’t they asked her? Why couldn’t she be consulted? Did they think she wasn’t enough? But even then – enough what?  
It was true that she wasn’t the agilest person on board and that she was the most different in terms of sailing experience, but still she was worth something.

“I don’t want to worry her before it’s time. Maybe we’ll think about something later and it will all be solved”  
Suddenly, Elizabeth’s words made their way through Scarlett’s thoughts just and her attention went immediately back to the inside of the cabin.  
“As you wish. But see, darling, your cousin there” Jack replied, making waving gestures with his hands, “she found out about the gold and its non-existent curse. And if she found out about the non-existent curse of the gold maybe she can find something out about the actual curse of the Dutchman, that does in fact exist”.  
A moment of silence followed, during which Scarlett wondered if Jack had just read her mind.  
“We’ll see” Elizabeth replied, finally.

 _We’ll see?_  
Scarlett snored so loud that the wobbling figures of Elizabeth and Jack froze behind the glass, instantly turning towards the door – and towards her.  
The girl quickly stood up and tried to walk away, but as soon as she turned her back to the captain’s cabin she heard the door slam open.  
“Scarlett?” Elizabeth asked. She seemed almost… surprised?  
Scarlett turned around again, facing her cousin with the most innocent smile she managed to fake.  
“Oh – Hi, Liz”  
“What are you doing here?” Elizabeth asked, leaning against the doorframe. Scarlett caught a glimpse of Jack inside the cabin, who was trying to look like he wasn’t listening – except that looking through his telescope was giving him away blatantly.  
“Nothing!” Scarlett exclaimed nervously. Well, that gave her away, too.  
“Ah” Liz observed, looking like she had fallen for it. “I thought someone from the crew was listening to us”  
“Oh, no no I was the only one here” Scarlett replied, shaking her head.  
“Is everything alright?”  
Maybe she had shook it too fast.  
Scarlett tried to find an answer, but it was harder than she had imagined. She didn’t want to lie – after all, she had gone up to her cousin to talk about a few details she had omitted from her story about her “relationship” with Sparrow and to know why she was never informed of their decisions.  
“Uh… well, I actually wanted to talk to you” she then admitted.  
Elizabeth frowned, worried. “Is there something wrong? Are you okay?”  
“Oh yes, yes Liz, don’t worry it’s nothing!” Scarlett hurried. She somehow wanted the other to stop worrying so much about her. She could take care of herself perfectly.  
Elizabeth sighed, relieved, and took a step aside to let Scarlett inside the cabin. Now that Jack was openly visible, he foxily smiled at Scarlett, waving his hand and almost dropping the telescope.  
“Come in” Elizabeth said “and tell me everything”.  
Scarlett wasn’t really in the mood to open up with Jack there – she still didn’t feel comfortable in his presence, especially after their “sword lesson” the night before.  
“Oh, really, it’s nothing” she mumbled, slowly walking away, “It was just…”  
She couldn’t even finish her sentence, because suddenly Cotton appeared from the deck, the parrot on his shoulder.  
“Land! Land! Granada!” the bird started shrieking and Scarlett mentally thanked him.


End file.
